Rome plans to install 1,800 additional defibrillators in bars and restaurants over the next year under a new initiative aimed at improving public safety, Qazinform News Agency reports, citing Agenzia Nova.

The proposal, presented on October 20, is expected to be approved by the Capitoline Assembly in the coming days.

"This initiative stems from work we had already begun with taxi drivers, donating 33 defibrillators last July. The idea is to spread both the device and awareness of its use," Mayor of Rome Roberto Gualtieri says.

The resolution would require businesses with at least 250 square meters of commercial space to have a defibrillator on-site. The city currently has around 2,000 devices across Rome and its metropolitan area, including those supplied to taxi drivers and those in school gyms, so the Capitoline Hill plans to double its lifesaving equipment within a year.

The city will also provide free defibrillator training courses in cooperation with medical institutions and industry associations. The sessions will be open to all residents, with places reserved for restaurant and bar owners and employees. 

The initiative comes amid an estimated 3,000 cardiac arrests registered annually in Rome.

The survival rate for cardiac arrest victims receiving defibrillator treatment in Italy is estimated at 8-9%, in line with the national average. In Denmark, the rate reaches 15%, supported in part by the inclusion of defibrillator training in school curricula.

The new requirement will also apply to newly opened establishments that meet the specified criteria, under regulations governing catering businesses.

Officials hope that expanding access to defibrillators and training more people in their use will improve emergency response and increase survival rates.

Earlier, it was reported that Russian surgeons had conducted the country's first-ever spinal cord transplant surgery, giving a patient facing complete paralysis a chance at recovery.

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